McLaughlin: De Pasquale ‘hot favourite’ for Eseries

Two-time Supercars champion Scott McLaughlin has tipped Anton De Pasquale to take over his mantle when the category dives into the virtual racing world.

The BP Supercars All Stars Eseries kicks off Wednesday night, filling a void for sports fans missing real-life action during the COVID-19 pandemic.

WATCH: PYE'S VIRTUAL LAP OF MONZA

With a wide range in simulator experience – including minimal amounts for Supercars champions Jamie Whincup, Rick Kelly and Mark Winterbottom – the usual pecking order is set for a shake-up.

Any questions around who will be vying for glory has been routinely met with three names: McLaughlin, De Pasquale and Shane van Gisbergen.

McLaughlin though believes the Penrite Racing youngster, who is yet to win a Virgin Australia Supercars Championship race, is the standout.

“I think I’ve been a member on iRacing for 10 years so I’ve had it for a long, long time,” McLaughlin told Supercars.com.

“I had a break there for a while for a couple of years and then I’ve sort of come back into it this year.

“Look, certainly I’ve always enjoyed the sim racing side, I have got a reasonable feel for it all as well.

“I feel like I know how to drive the car, you know how everyone has been talking about that you don’t have that ‘seat to the pants’ type feel… I guess you just get used to it.

“But the biggest thing I probably don’t have right now is an understanding of the track limits and how much track I can use to get the time out and that’s probably where someone like Anton or even Shane, because they’ve consistently played it, they’re really good at, especially Anton.

“For me, Anton is the hot favourite.

“And Brodie Kostecki if he runs, he’s very fast in the V8.”

Dunlop Super2 Series leader Kostecki has been tasked with creating fixed set-ups for the entire field to use, given his experience across both simulators and real-life Supercars.

For his part, Kostecki also put De Pasquale – his 2020 PIRTEK Enduro Cup partner – forward as the driver to beat.

“He’s unbelievably quick on a sim so I think he would be my pick to win the series to be honest,” Kostecki told Supercars.com.

The opening Eseries round will involve races at Phillip Island and Monza, and will be broadcast on Fox Sports, Kayo, TEN Play and Sky Sports New Zealand.